Vol 52 No 12 | ZAMBIA Sata rises in the west 10th June 2011 The electoral fortunes of Michael Sata are improving, in what has become a two-horse presidential race. The conventional wisdom had been that Sata could not defeat President Rupiah...
Vol 52 No 12 | NAMIBIA Trial by procrastination 10th June 2011 Due to open on 1 June, the long-awaited Avid Investment Corporation trial, involving claims over the embezzlement of 30 million Namibian dollars (US$4.3 mn.), has been postponed yet...
Vol 52 No 12 | SOUTH AFRICA Malema and Zuma for breakfast 10th June 2011 The African National Congress Youth League’s 24th annual conference convenes on 16 June with a new feature, the ‘Business Networking Lounge’. Under the rubric of ‘Youth Action For...
Vol 4 (AAC) No 8 | SOUTH AFRICACHINABRIEFING Aurora’s gold mine collapses 9th June 2011 On 2 June, Congress of South African Trade Unions General Secretary Zwelinzima Vavi called on the government to launch an investigation into Aurora Empowerment Systems and the Pamodzi...
Vol 52 No 11 | SOUTH AFRICA Election results keep Zuma in contention 27th May 2011 Enough black voters have stayed loyal to the ANC in local elections to boost Jacob Zuma’s hopes of a second presidential term In spite of many failures in governance and widespread anger among its supporters, the ruling African National Congress decisively won the municipal elections on 18 May. Popular discontent...
Vol 52 No 11 | NAMIBIA Where the BEE sucks 27th May 2011 A trial in June could mark the start of a reckoning for massive fraud in the public sector workers’ pension fund Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) company Avid Investments collapsed in 2004, losing 30 million Namibian dollars (US$4.3 mn.) to the embezzlement of Social Security Commission (SSC) funds, but the...
Vol 52 No 11 | MOZAMBIQUE Coal train blues 27th May 2011 Vast coal mines are ready to export millions of tonnes to Asia but disputes over transport and contracts are holding back the trade Mining companies with a stake in Mozambique’s 23 billion tonnes of coal reserves are seeking alternative export routes to Asia because of disputes between the government and Indian...
Vol 52 No 10 | ANGOLA Why the Arab Spring worries Luanda 13th May 2011 After 32 years in power, President Dos Santos presides over a fast growing economy which leaves most of his compatriots in dire poverty The buzz word is ‘opacity’. Elections are due by the end of 2012 but no one is certain who is standing. Angola has one of the strongest economies...
Vol 52 No 10 | ANGOLA Succession discussions 13th May 2011 Taboo for years, the question of who will succeed President José Eduardo dos Santos has finally come into the open. The Spokesman for the ruling Movimento Popular de...
Vol 52 No 10 | ZIMBABWE Old man out 13th May 2011 The ruling party looks for a new leader, while the opposition wants fair elections At 87 years old, President Robert Mugabe is indisputably slowing down. His party wanted elections this year without waiting for a new constitution. In the run-up, Mugabe was...